Dollar Edges Slightly Lower as Markets Brace for Elections

The US dollar had a small decline in today’s trading against the euro and the British pound as nervous traders anticipated the result of today’s election race between Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump.

Latest opinion polls showed that Clinton has a lead over Trump after FBI Director James Comey told Congress on Monday that the agency found no evidence to support criminal charges against the Democratic candidate, which raised traders’ hopes for a win by Clinton in today’s presidential election.

Dollar’s exchange rate has been jittery against major currencies today after it had a positive surge following yesterday’s FBI announcement. Traders are being very cautious after learning from opinion polls during the days leading to the UK’s Brexit referendum that small gaps in polls can lead to unexpected results.

In the case of an election result that hands the White House to Donald Trump, the greenback will likely have a sharp decline as investors return to the safety of haven currencies and assets like the Japanese yen, Swiss franc, and gold.

EUR/USD traded at 1.1047 as of 17:09 GMT today after closing on Monday at 1.1040. The pair touched its lowest level for the day at 1.1030 at 04:40 GMT. GBP/USD declined to 1.2384 after touching 1.2438 at 10:23 GMT. GBP/USD opened the day at 1.2392 after dropping on Monday to 1.2382.

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